Courtesy of the Marauders
by jackslvr
Summary: This fic commences in the Marauders' first year and it ends in their seventh year. The Marauders will change from boys to teenagers, and then teens to men. JamesLily, SiriusOC, RemusOC, PeterNobody
1. The One With the Acceptance Letters

WARNING! This year contains squibs, spitting, snow that isn't water anymore, and one big prank.

Year One

Chapter One: The One With the Acceptance Letters

"Have you finished them yet Minerva?" A middle-aged woman, apparently Minerva, looked up from an unfinished pile of letters. She was surprised, for she didn't know she had a guest. She gazed at the elderly man through her square rimmed glasses.

"Nope," she replied, shaking her head disappointedly, "I just finished the O's, and there are a lot of them, mind you."

"I know, and you're doing a great job so far." The old man complimented, now twirling his silver beard in his long fingers. She smiled and purred lightly. Minerva continued to write diligently; she wanted to finish the letters before dusk.

"Each year, I am reminded of the myriad of students we have at Hogwarts. Each individual student seems to be another drop in the ocean, Albus." He nodded in silent agreement. There was an awkward pause as Albus watched her quill glide across the parchment.

"That may be true, but there are always some that stand above the others." Albus stated as Minerva signed the letter to a boy with the name James Potter.

* * *

It was a quiet day at the Pettigrew household. Mrs. Pettigrew was rocking back and forth in her chair, knitting. She wasn't paying attention to what she was doing, however. Her eyes were locked onto the window. Mr. Pettigrew was trying to read the paper, but he was looking at the same window. Their son, a dim, rotund boy of eleven, was twirling his thumbs madly. Mrs. Pettigrew's kind, brown eyes nervously looked back at her knitting. She was a short, dumpy woman, and her husband only stood a few inches above her. He and his son shared the same light brown mousey hair. She was a pureblood witch, and he was a pureblood too, but alas unfortunately a squib. This left an uncertainty to what their son, Peter, would be.

Peter had never shown any magical nor intellectual prowess, and they were afraid that he may never. There was only one way to truly tell if he was a wizard or not. They hoped that the letter would arrive soon.

A tapping at the window made all of the Pettigrews jump to their feet. Peter sprinted to the owl at the window as fast as his chubby legs would allow. He took the letter from the barn owl. The envelope had the Hogwarts rest on it. Excitedly, he ripped the envelope apart and read the letter aloud.

Dear Mr. Pettigrew

We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment.

Term begins on September 1. We await your owl no later than July 31.

Yours sincerely,

Minerva McGonagall

Deputy Headmistress

"Mum, Dad, I'm a wizard!" Peter shouted excitedly. His mother and father were overjoyed, and they jumped up and down shouting.

"He's a wizard! He's a wizard! He's a wizard! He's a wi-OUCH!" Mr. Pettigrew tripped over the brick fireplace, "I'm okay, but Peter's a wizard!"

"This calls for a celebration!" Mrs. Pettigrew said proudly, "Let's go get doughnuts!"

"Yay! Doughnuts! But can I have a wand too?" Peter asked his mother.

"Of course."

* * *

"Here, try this one." Mr. Ollivander carefully handed a young boy another one of his wands. The wizard brushed his slightly long brown hair behind his ear. He took a deep breath and flicked the new wand uncomfortably. A puff of maroon smoke was omitted from the tip of the wand and it laughed at him.

"Nope." Ollivander sighed as he snatched the wand away. The smoke remained above the boy, still chuckling.

The bell on the shop door rang, and a short boy with jet black hair stepped in the shop.

"Are you Mr. Ollivander?" The boy asked as he looked around from the vendor to the hundreds of wands to the other boy. The boy, he noted to himself, looked tired, and a gash was visible from behind his longish tawny brown locks.

"Ah, yes I am," Mr. Ollivander replied, "and you must be James Potter. You look just like your father. I believe I have another customer too." Mr. Ollivander indicated to the boy, no older than the other two, standing behind James. He had a handsome face and charming grey eyes that were hidden from view behind his dark hair.

"You are one of the Blacks, I assume. Sirius, no doubt?" Ollivander questioned, bowing deeply. Sirius nodded with a slight smile.

"I'll get you two" he gestured to Sirius and James "wands to try out. And Remus, I'll get you another pile." As soon as Mr. Ollivander went off, Sirius turned to James.

"So, are you going to be a first year at Hogwarts?"

"Yeah." James responded.

"What about you?" Sirius asked, now facing Remus. He looked up, astounded that someone was actually speaking to him.

"Oh, um, yes." The timid wizard tried another wand, but nothing happened. The reddish smoke hovering above him laughed heartily.

"Where are you going next James?"

"I want to stock up on some dungbombs from Burkes Joke Shop before the term starts, you?"  
"Same here."

"Here we go. I have more for you," Ollivander placed ten wands next to Remus, "and one each for you." Sirius flicked his wand, and a fountain of red sparks erupted for the end.

"Excellent wand. Beechwood, 14 inches, and a unicorn hair as the core. Perfect for dueling. Try yours, Mr. Potter." Mr. Ollivander suggested. James waved his wand, and a stream of golden light glided through the room.

"Another good wand, 11 inches, mahogany, and a unicorn hair as well. Great with Transfiguration. Oddly enough, the same unicorn gave its hair to both of your wands. I remember every wand." Sirius's expression could be read that he was either impressed with Mr. Ollivander, or he though that he was completely insane. James smiled at Sirius, and they strolled out of the wand shop, passing a short, chubby young wizard with a pointed nose.

"Did you hear that Burkes has a new product called the Flipping Hat?" Sirius said as they walked down the street of Diagon Alley.

"No."

"Well, it looks like a normal wizard's hat, but when someone puts it on their head, they flip over instantly."

"Cool." They eventually reached their destination. The shopkeeper walked over to greet them.

"Mr. Black, it is good to see you. And I am happy to see that you brought a friend too." The man bowed his head.

"Sirius?" James whispered.

"Yeah?"

"How come people-"

"Hey! There are the hats." Sirius interrupted as he pulled James to the product by his arm. James was curious at this peculiar behavior, but he decided maybe it wasn't the time to talk about it. Sirius grabbed one of the hats at the top. James watched intently as Sirius cautiously placed it upon his head. In less than second, he flipped over and landed painfully on his bum. Instead of cursing angrily like someone else would have done, Sirius laughed, allowing James to laugh with him. James grabbed another hat and joined Sirius in continuous rounds of flips and chuckles. Many older witches and wizards scoffed at their immature behavior.

"Such a frivolous toy." they convinced themselves. The two new friends each bought a hat once their bruised bottoms didn't allow any more tries.

"I'll see you later," James told Sirius as they walked out of the store with bags full of dungbombs and other miscellaneous joke items, "I have to meet my parents at the broom shop."

"That's okay. I gotta go to Flourish and Blotts. I'll see you at school." James squeezed across the crowded street, and Sirius opened the door to Flourish and Blotts.

* * *

A/N: Don't worry; the story will get much better as it progresses, especially when we get past those pesky introductions. Anyway, please review. We accept compliments, corrections, and flames.


	2. The One Where They All Meet

Disclaimer: We forgot to put one in the previous chapter. Anyway, we don't own Harry Potter or the Marauders. If we did, the movies would be dead-on accurate, our stories wouldn't be free and on the internet (they would be published and you'd have to pay to read them NYAH!), we would be freakin' rich, and SIRIUS WOULD STILL BE ALIVE!

A/N: This chapter's a bit short, but the next one's longer. Now to respond to our reviewers:

moonlight1111- Yay! Our first reviewer! Thank you!

Kamden- Awww, thanks for all of the nice comments.

brenngt14- Yeah, introductions do stink, but the story will get much better after chapter three

Red English Rose- Yeah, we love that part too!

* * *

Chapter Two: The One Where They All Meet

"Be careful while you're at school this year, James." Mrs. Potter told her son.

"And we don't want to hear about you setting things on fire like you did at that summer camp!" James's father warned him.

"Hey, at least you would know that I am having fun! But I won't," James recovered after seeing his parents' shocked expressions, "I'll try to avoid any destructive behavior." James waved to his parents and set off towards the Hogwarts Express.

James decided to ride in the last compartment of the train. As he opened the compartment door, he noticed that it was already occupied.

"Hey James!" Sirius said with a broad smile on his face. James smiled in return and sat across from his new friend.

"Have you used the hat yet? Sirius asked with a hint of mischief.

"Yeah, and it was funny. I used it on my dad, and he had no idea what happened. I told him to bring it to work to 'share' the fun, but he refused."

"My little brother Regulus flipped for it. Literally. You should've seen the look on his face." Sirius laughed.

"I wish I could've." sighed James.

"Yeah, it was something like this." Sirius imitated an expression of pain and confusion. James chuckled.

"You mean like this?" James tried to put the same expression on his face. Sirius let out a bark-like laugh and nearly fell over.

"Now you look stupid!"

"Hey, when does the train leave?" James asked as he noticed that the train was still stationary. A few moments later, the train was in motion. Distressed shouts were heard from outside the train.

"Hey! Stop! I need to get on! Hey! Wait! No! No! No!" Sirius opened the compartment window to see a third year wizard running beside the train, waving his arms frantically.

"Well, hello down there!" Sirius greeted in an irritatingly high pitched voice. James poked his head out and joined in the fun, imitating Sirius's tone.

"What seems to be the problem, young man?" said James in mock concern.

"I can't get on the train!"

"Yes, you can," Sirius stated with a huge smirk, "just open the door and step in."

"But the train is moving!"

"Oh, then you must jump for a window." James suggested.

"I can't!"

"Jump!"

"Jump!"

"Jump!"

"Jump!" The boy finally jumped to the nearest window. Miraculously, he was able to pull himself into the open window.

"Wow, I didn't think he could make it." said James. Sirius

picked the hat back up.

"I would really like to use this on Snape."

"Who's that?" James asked. Before Sirius could reply, the compartment door opened. A wizard with tawny brown hair shyly approached them. His appearance and apparel was torn and shaggy, yet friendly. He smiled and slid the door shut.

"Do you mind if I stay here?" he asked hopefully. Sirius gestured to the seat next to James.

"No, we don't mind. I remember you. Did you find a wand?" The new boy laughed lightly as he sat down beside James.

"Yes, I did. It took an hour, but I found one."

"Why did it take so long?"

"He said that he rarely ever uses ebony or manticore hair, and it's even more uncommon for him to use it together. I'm Remus Lupin, by the way." He reached out his hand to James. James shook the offered hand, and so did Sirius.

"I am James Potter, and he is Sirius Black. Which house do you think you'll be in? I'm pretty sure that I am going to Gryffindor."

"Ravenclaw, maybe." Remus said thoughtfully. "How about you, Sirius?" Sirius threw his head back uncomfortably. His hair fell gracefully from his eyes and face.

"I'd rather not talk about this, not now anyway." A long awkward silence followed, which was only broken by the arrival of the sweet trolley. "Hey, do you guys want something? I'll buy." Sirius purchased two boxes of Bertie Botts Every Flavor Beans. James smiled impishly as he picked up two beans. He threw one at Sirius across from him, and one at Remus to his right. Sirius rubbed his nose, and Remus massaged his left cheek. They looked at each other, and then started pelting beans ferociously at James. He grabbed as many as he could and sent bullets back. Sirius took two handfuls and shoved them into his comrades' mouths. James and Remus swallowed with identical looks of disgust. They ganged up on Sirius and force-fed him the most repulsive-looking beans. Shortly, all of the candies were consumed.

"So," James said finally, leaving his mouth open as if to air out the horrible taste, "who is this 'Snape' guy you were talking about?"

"Well, he's-" The compartment door slammed open, and a short, chubby kid was panting in the doorway. He looked as if he had run a mile.

"Hey guys," he gasped, "may I , may I join you?" The three looked at each other nervously. Nobody really wanted him to stay. James was the first to speak.

"Sorry, there's no room." He lied.

"Yes there is." The boy pointed to the space next to Sirius. "There's a spot." Sirius lay down, taking up the entire seat.

"Now there isn't." Sirius told him.

"Let's just let him stay." Remus finally said. Sirius scooted away. The mousy brown haired boy eagerly sat down.

"I'm Peter Pettigrew." Sirius jabbed his finger at the other two.

"That's James, and he's Remus. I'm Sirius." Peter smiled excitedly.

"What were you saying about Snape, Sirius?"

"He is the most-"

"Severus Snape?" Peter interrupted. "Is he tall-"

"Everyone is tall compared to you." James remarked.

"Yeah, even James, and he's short!" joked Sirius.

"But does he have greasy, black hair and a big, hooked nose?" Peter continued.

"Yep."

"He kicked me out of his compartment." Said Peter.

"How do you know him, Sirius?" Remus asked. Sirius sighed and brushed his hair back with his fingers.

"My family knows his. My mum and his mum are best friends. His family is the muggle-hating type. At first, I pitied him. His parents fought a lot, both verbally and physically. He ended up to be a jerk like his parents." Remus was about to ask another question, until the compartment door swung open again.

"Who is it this ..." James didn't even bother finishing. He was at loss for words when he saw one of the three girls at the door. She was a very pretty girl with magnificent green eyes and beautiful, red, shoulder-length hair, but those eyes...

"Can we help you?" Remus kindly asked.

"Is there any room in here?" said the girl to the left of the redhead.

"Of course there is!" Sirius exclaimed happily.

"But you said-"

"Of course there is!" Sirius interrupted Peter. "We can make room for the ladies." Two girls sat on either side of Sirius, and the redhead squeezed between Remus and James.

"That's Remus, James, and I'm Sirius."

"What about me?" Peter objected.

"Okay, that's Peter. Now," Sirius stretched his arms around the two girls' shoulders, "what are your names?"

"I'm Carolyn Parker." Said the girl to Sirius's right.

"Emily Smith." Giggled the girl left of Sirius.

"My name is Lily Evans." The beautiful redhead told the group. _I like the name Lily,_ James thought to himself. Peter looked over at Emily. He noticed that she enjoyed the fact that Sirius's arm was resting on her shoulder. Peter slyly wrapped one chunky arm around Emily's small waist. Emily shrieked and slapped Peter across the face. He got up quickly, massaging his cheek.

"Fine, then," he said as he sat down in the middle of the compartment. "I'll just sit 'Criss-Cross Applesauce' right here." James and Sirius raised their eyebrows. The girls giggled uncontrollably. Remus decided to ignore it completely. James gazed out through the compartment window and watched the world go by.

* * *

A/N: Still introducing characters in the story, but don't worry. This story will get really good soon. Here's a little line from the next chapter.

**Preview of Chapter Three**

"Wait a minute! Of course it's a nose! It's not a planet!"


	3. The One With the Sorting

A/N: Thanks for being patient with us. AP homework took up a lot of our time. Now for our reviewers:

brenngt14**- **Thanks, we felt that our introduction wasn't very interesting. It will get even better as their years at Hogwarts progress. We guarantee it.

Greeknelo- Sometimes, two words can go a long way. We appreciate your review.

Kamden- Don't worry, there will be plenty of foreshadowing and references to the future.

Lemonade101- Yeah, we can't wait to write what's next!

moonlight1111- Well, we're identical twin sisters, so working together is very easy for us. About Emily and Carolyn, they won't end up with Remus or Sirius. They're just two of Lily's many friends, although one of them will date Sirius for a little while in a later year...

Red English Rose- We enjoyed that scene too. As for their silly "high-pitched falsettos," just imagine the voices of the Knights Who Say "Ni" (or Nee) in Monty Python.

PirateBlacksmith- Thank you! By the way, we've been a fan of your fic, "The Pirates" for a long time. It's a very funny one!

**IMPORTANT!: In this chapter it will seem like we portray Hufflepuffs as weak and unintelligent students, but that is not what we mean. The Sorting in this chapter is very pivotal to the story because the Hufflepuffs will be offended (you will see why) by Peter and another boy. This will cause them to work hard and prove that they aren't the "lot." Again, we aren't try to say that Hufflepuff is the worst House. We've already had confusion and complaints. **

Anyway, here we go!

* * *

Chapter Three: The One With the Sorting

The train slowed to a stop. The group stood up and stretched. They looked out the window and saw a small, quaint village. A loud voice boomed through each corridor and compartment.

"We have reached Hogsmeade. Please grab all of your luggage and trash, and disembark the Hogwarts Express in a single file manner. Thank you." Of course, none of the students, with the exception of Remus, had listened to the announcement. Remus, Sirius, and James were pushed through a crowded hallway with neglected trash on the floor. Remus tried picking up some, but he was shoved whenever he stopped and bent down. When every student had left, Peter crawled out of the compartment. _That's the last time I sit Indian style for a long time on a train,_ Peter thought, _my knees hurt so badly, I can barely walk._

"Firs' years, over 'ere! This way! Come on!" roared a very tall man with a grizzly black mane. His black, beady eyes were friendly, and his powerful presence was comforting. The giant was gesturing towards a large lake with many small boats. The three new friends got into one of the boats with another first year boy.

"Hi, I'm Aaron Agbert." He told them. The trio nodded and introduced themselves as they have done many times that day. "I'm really scared about going to school. Are you?" James and Sirius simply shrugged. "My sister told me about this place. She says that they use a 'hat' to divide us into houses, and if you're weak, if sucks your life out. My older sister always tells me that I'm weak. I'm going to die, aren't I?"

"Afraid so, mate." Sirius said sadly. He hung his head in feigned despair.

"But I hear that its pain free." James explained in what was supposed to be a comforting tone.

"It was nice knowing you." James and Sirius spun around to look at Remus, who had just spoken, with happily surprised expressions. Remus smiled and mouthed, "I wanted to join the fun."

Aaron continued to whimper pitifully for the rest of the trip. Remus, Sirius, and James didn't let that ruin the experience. It was already the evening, and the sun was delicately setting. The lake and the sky looked like a water color painting with gorgeous oranges, reds, purples, and a dark blue descending from the top. A few girls shrieked as an enormous squid surfaced. It swung its elongated tentacles playfully. The trio looked ahead. The castle was in sight. It was so grand, and so tangible. It had many tall towers, and several rooms were lighted. The grounds were large; Sirius pointed out a giant tree that was thrashing its branches at a nearby squirrel.

"Wow, it's a Whomping Willow! I've never seen one before." James said excitedly.

"Me neither!" Sirius exclaimed in equal interest.

"Pound it!" Sirius and James shouted at the tree, and apparently, it had listened.

The giant man opened the grand oak doors. The first years were awed by the splendor of Hogwarts. Many portraits kindly welcomed the new students and guaranteed a wonderful experience. A loud cackle was heard and a little, floating man with a wide smile and wicked eyes appeared before them, holding a large muggle watergun.

"Oh no! It's Peeves!" shouted one of the first years. "My older brother told me about him!" Peeves started spraying the screaming students with cold water. James and Sirius laughed when he was finished.

"Nice one!" Sirius complimented Peeves.

"Y-you liked it?" Peeves asked confusedly.

"Yeah! Only next time, you should put a little dirt in the water." James suggested honestly.

"Only not too much," Sirius added, "mud doesn't squirt out very well."

"I like you two!" Peeves told them and disappeared. A few minutes later, a middle-aged witch walked through the doors in front of them.

"Good evening. I am your Transfiguration teacher Professor McGonagall. Please follow me in an orderly fashion." The students actually followed instructions this time, mostly due to the fact that no one wanted to get on a teacher's bad side on the first day. They were led into the Great Hall. Four long tables, at which many students were seated, stood parallel to each other. Colorful banners were hung above the tables. James nudged Sirius and Remus and pointed to the ceiling. They saw a light purple sky with a few stars scattered across it. The new students lined up in front of the teachers, facing the student body. A tall, thin, elderly man with a long silver beard stood up.

"Welcome first years!" he boomed, "I am your headmaster, Professor Dumbledore. We will now sort you into one of the four Houses. Good luck!" Professor McGonagall brought an old hat who sang a strange song. The students applauded politely. Professor McGonagall unrolled a long parchment.

"Agbert, Aaron." she called. Aaron whimpered and shook his head. He refused to move otherwise. "Agbert, Aaron!" she shouted his name even louder. Aaron was shaking all over now and moaning even more loudly. "Mr. Agbert, please come forward!" Aaron dropped to the floor and hugged one of the teachers' table legs.

"No! No! You can't make me! I wont' go! No!" he cried. One of the teachers, probably the Charms instructor, Professor Gamby, grabbed the shrieking child's ankles and pulled. Aaron wouldn't let go. "No! You can't make me! I don't wanna die! Let go of me!"

"HUFFLEPUFF!" the sorting hat shouted from the stool a couple yards away from the terrified student. Aaron got up. His school uniform magically changed to suit his house. His robes were lined with yellow, and his tie was now black and yellow. Aaron walked between the Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw tables. A Ravenclaw fourth year girl was laughing hysterically.

"Shut up, sis." he told her.

"And I thought that Peter kid was a whelp!" James said to Sirius quietly as Azure, Yvonne was sorted into Slytherin. A couple minutes later, Sirius's name was called out.

"Black, Sirius." The Slytherins got excited and nodded at each other. Professor McGonagall placed the Sorting Hat on Sirius's head.

"Hmmm, since you are a Black, I would normally place you in Slytherin, but you seem much different than the rest of your family." the hat whispered in his ear, "Let's try something wild and put you in GRYFFINDOR!" Sirius smiled and looked down at his new Gryffindor robes. There were many catcalls and cheering from the Gryffindor table. Sirius glanced at the teachers' table as he sat with the Gryffindors. Most of the teachers were very surprised, and Professor Platt, the Divinations teacher and Head of Slytherin House, had fallen out of his chair. He was known as a schizophrenic, so nobody really noticed. What was noticeable was that some of the Slytherin students had fallen as well. Some of the Slytherin girls were sobbing, and one particularly angry black-haired girl was stabbing the table with her utensils. Sirius turned his attention back to the Sorting.

"Etrek, John."

"HUFFLEPUFF!"

"Evans, Lily." James became excited as the short, pretty, red-haired girl skipped to the Sorting Hat.

"GRYFFINDOR!" it called shortly. Remus waited for his name to be called.

"Hither, Ana."

"RAVENCLAW!"

_My name will be called soon,_ Remus thought to himself after several people had been sorted, _any minute now._

"Lupin, Remus." Remus took a deep breath and stepped forward.

"You're clever, and you're brave; I can see that," the Sorting Hat informed him once it was placed on his head, "but you're afraid that your friends would leave you if they find out your secret. That's understandable."

"Where are you going with th-"

"GRYFFINDOR!" Remus jumped off the stool and sat on the chair left of Sirius. They waited through a long line of O's.

"Pettigrew, Peter." Peter timidly put on the Sorting Hat.

"You're very cowardly, not very intelligent, and dependent on stronger people. You should be in HUFF-"

"NO!" Peter screamed out loud as he jumped off the stool. He was on his knees with his hands above his head. "Not Hufflepuff! Don't put me in Hufflepuff!"

"Well, you're putting me in a difficult position." whispered the Hat, "You don't belong in the other Houses, but you would be best in GRYFFINDOR!"

"YES!" Peter shouted. He leapt off the stool once more and jogged over to the Gryffindor table.

"Potter, James." James strode over to the stool. James picked up the hat. It had barely touched his messy hair when it shrieked "GRYFFINDOR!"

"What, no discussion?"

"There is no need for one, Mr. Potter." James walked over to the Gryffindor table and sat down on Sirius's right.

"What's up with that Slytherin girl? She's tearing up the table with her fork." James asked.

"That's my cousin, Bellatrix." Sirius laughed, "She's angry that I'm not in Slytherin. I'd better tell her not to tell my parents."

"Raven, Karen."

"RAVENCLAW!"

"Why does it matter?" Remus inquired.

"I'll tell you some other time." Sirius said uncomfortably.

"Snape, Severus." A short, skinny kid with medium-length, greasy, dark hair sauntered to the Sorting Hat.

"Is that him?" Remus asked.

"Yep."

"Whoa! Is that a nose or a planet?" inquired James.

"Experts have not been able to tell." Sirius joked. Peter looked very hard at Snape's face.

"SLYTHERIN!"

"Wait a minute!" Peter exclaimed at last, "Of course it's a nose! It's not a planet!" Remus, Sirius and James exchanged humored glances and tried to stifle their laughter, but they failed miserably. "What's so funny?"

After Zoquer, Gilbert was sorted into Slytherin, Dumbledore stood up.

"I'll have to say that this was definitely the most interesting Sorting." He beamed at the masses of students, "I have an announcement: we have planted a Whomping Willow recently, so please, don't go near it. You may now eat, and Remus Lupin, I would like a word with you." There were many "oooo's" as Remus got up and the food appeared. Sirius and James helped themselves to some food, and Peter helped himself to a lot. Remus sat back down.

"Whuh wuzzat abow?" Peter said with his mouth packed with food.

"Oh nothing. I uh had erm...schedule problems."

"So, these problems were so big that the Headmaster had to personally talk to you about it?" James said sarcastically.

"Well, er, I uh, um, was given, er Care of Magical Creatures, er, three times." Remus stretched the lie even further. "Yes, and each was taught by a different teacher, none of whom were Professor Kettleburn. I was also given Seventh year Transfiguration."

"Wow," Peter said after swallowing, "that's a messed up schedule!"

"Yeah," Sirius said suspiciously, "messed up."

"Hey Sirius! Your cousin is trying to get your attention." Remus pointed out. Sirius turned to look at Bellatrix, who was pointing at Sirius, sawing her pork viciously, and lipping the words "dead meat." In response, Sirius held up his middle finger at her.

"Sirius, are you going to finish your mashed potatoes?"

"Yes, Peter."

"What about your pork?"

"You can still get more from the plates." Sirius groaned. Remus pushed his plate away.

"Wha? Tat's it?" said Peter with his mouth full of steaming potatoes, "Tat wuzzen awat."

"I'm not hungry. I'm going to the Gryffindor House with the others."

"I'll go too." Sirius said.

"And me." James added. Once the three of them were out of sight, Peter emptied their plates onto his own, and devoured it quickly.

* * *

A/N: Again, the events that happened at the Sorting will encourage the Hufflepuffs to work hard. We know it seemed like we put them in a negative perspective, but be patient. In the course of this story, we will show them as the perseverent students they are (we know we're spoiling the story a bit, but their hard work will cause them to win the House Cup in most of the Marauders' years at Hogwarts, and they will be the main competition). Anyway, please review! We love reviews!

**Preview of Chapter Four**

"I meant for you to _sit_ down in a seat, not to literally _take_ one."


	4. The One With the Rubber Bands

A/N: Yay, a new chapter! Woohoo! parties We get to read your reviews! We LOVE reviews, and now to answer previous reviews! Woot!

moonlight1111- Yeah, we are lucky. Having a twin is very cool, except for the stupid twin stereotypes. Don't worry, the Hufflepuffs will have comeback, although it will be subtle, gradual, and it might be hard to catch if you aren't paying attention.

Blue Eyes At Night- Parles-tu français? Tu as dit intéressante et nous avons supposé que tu parle français. Merci pour la revue!

Red English Rose- Thank you! Keep reading!

Kamden- Yeah, keep an eye out for odd behavior or appearances of extra and main characters.

Marauder4eva- You're just the kind of reviewer we love! Three in a row! Thank you! We didn't steal the titles from Friends, just their concept of titles heeheehee We love Friends, and a lot of our story was inspired by the show. Phoebe's the best! sings "Smelly Cat" By the way, we love the first two stories of your Marauder trilogy so far, and we can't wait to read the next chapter! Update soon!

lindalee4- Thank you! We love it when our readers feel that we are portraying the characters accurately. It's one of our many petpeeves when authors misinterpret characters and mess them up.

* * *

Chapter Four: The One With the Rubber Bands

"James, get up!"

"I don't want to, Remus."

"You'll miss Transfiguration."

"Yeah," Sirius added, now jumping on James's bed, "and you'll miss Lily as well." James sat up in an instant.

"I'm up!" He then paused. "Wait, how do you know I like Lily?"

"It's obvious." Sirius nodded. James slipped on his shirt and his socks. He paused again.

"If it's obvious, then does she-"

"Come on!" Remus interrupted, "We have seven minutes to go to the first floor!" James grabbed his cloak and his bag and raced to the dormitory door.

"Guys! Wait for me!" Peter groggily said. He had just woken up.

"We can't Peter! We don't want to be late!" James explained.

"Oh, okay. Go ahead." As the trio left, Peter lazily sat up and looked around the empty room. It then hit Peter.

"Oh no! If waiting for me would make them late, then I am going to be late anyway!"

* * *

"Let's sit here." Sirius said, pointing to three seats in the back of the classroom. As soon as they sat down, Lily and her friends walked into the classroom. James had to hit Sirius several times to get him to stop humming "Here Comes the Bride."

"Welcome to your first Transfiguration class. To remind those who have forgotten, I am Professor McGonagall. Transfiguration is the art of changing the form of one object into the form of another. Don't think that this course will be easy, because-"

The door silently opened and Peter tiptoed in the room. Obviously, he was trying to be inconspicuous, and it obviously didn't work.

"You're late Mr.-" the Professor checked the class roster, "Mr. Pettigrew. And someone from my own house as well. I would have expected better. Explain yourself."

"I slept in?" Peter said unsurely.

"That's five points from Gryffindor for the five minutes you missed. Take a seat."

"Yes m'am." Peter gloomily sighed as he picked up a chair.

"I meant for you to _sit_ down in a seat, not to literally _take_ one." Peter blushed furiously and sat down. The class let out a couple of snickers.

"As I was saying, this class will not be easy, and I would gladly give more work if there are any doubts. Today, we will be turning straw into needle." Sirius smiled and turned to James.

"This will be easy." he whispered. James wasn't listening, however. He was too busy watching Lily flip her hair behind her and reach for her wand.

"You first flick your wand to the left and say _stranalus_. Don't flick your wand to the right, because the straw will-"

"-turn to ash." Sirius interrupted out loud. Professor McGonagall abruptly turned to face Sirius.

"Mr. Black, even though you get special treatment from others, you will most definitely not get any here."

"I don't ask for special treatment"

"If you keep talking without raising your hand, you will get a detention." McGonagall snapped.

"I understand. If I get a detention, I get a detention. I may even ask for two." Sirius responded coolly.

"Don't." said Professor McGonagall sternly. Remus stared at his piece of straw, and then turned to Sirius.

"What does she mean about special-"

"Look!" Sirius shouted, "I have turned my straw into needle on my first try!" James narrowed his eyes suspiciously.

"Remus, do you ever get the feeling that Sirius is hiding something?" he whispered.

"More and more everyday." Remus said as he sent a spell to his straw, turning it into a needle. Across the room, Peter wasn't having as much luck.

"Professor, mine keeps turning to ash!"

"Show me what you've been doing Mr. Pettigrew." Peter demonstrated the spell. His straw hissed and turned into ash.

"You've been flicking your wand to your right." Professor McGonagall stated.

"No, I've been flicking it to my left!" Peter retorted. He held up his left hand and made an "R" with his thick fingers. "See? This hand makes an 'R,' so the other hand must be my left."

"Make an 'L' with that same hand." Peter did as he was told.

"Hey! That works too!" he paused, "Oh no! I've been telling people that my wand hand was my left!"

* * *

"We have Potions next, don't we?" Remus asked as the students filed out of the Transfiguration classroom.

"Yeah, that class sounds easy too." said Sirius.

"What I want to know is how Transfiguration will be useful." Said James. They were halfway down the Grand Staircase before anyone could reply.

"Well, you could-" Sirius started. He stopped when Snape walked between James and him, pushing them lightly and giving Sirius a nasty glare. "you could do this." Sirius continued. He pulled a single hair from his head and transfigured it into a rubber band. Taking a needle from his pocket, he held it in his left hand. With his right, he formed a slingshot with the thumb, the pointer finger and the rubber band. He pulled the rubber band, rested the needle on the band, took careful aim and released. It stuck to the back of Snape's cloak.

"When he leans back into his chair, he will feel it." Sirius said smugly.

"How did you do that?" Remus inquired.

"Loads of practice on my little brother." Sirius explained with a huge smirk.

"Sounds like your brother is the guinea pig for a lot of things." James joked.

"He is." At the foot of the stairs, they met another "friend." Peter was waiting for them at the Dungeons' door.

"Hey guys!"

"Hey Peter." James said with no enthusiasm.

"What are you doing here?" Sirius asked.

"I was waiting for you guys. That's what friends do!" exclaimed Peter excitedly.

"We're not your friends." James said, indicating to the three of them.

"Oh, okay." For some reason, Peter was still smiling. Remus reached for the doorknob.

"What are you still doing here Peter?" James asked.

"We're hanging out," said Peter, "that's what friends do!"

"Well, we can't hang out any longer because, um, because..." James's voice trailed off.

"...because we were going to sprint to class. Ready, set, GO!" Sirius said quickly. Sirius, James and Remus ran down the dungeons hallway.

"Guys! I can't run! Oh, fine." Peter sighed. After taking a left, Remus began to slow down.

"Did we lose him?"

"Yeah," James laughed, "after the first stride!" The trio stopped running and started sliding across the stone floors. They skidded to a halt at the Potions classroom door, all three of them still laughing.

"Let's make sure that Peter can't sit with us." Remus suggested. James found two seats in the second row where he and Sirius sat. Remus picked the one behind them. Snape picked a seat near Remus. Sirius and James watched with delight as Snape leaned back, let out a yelp of pain, and sat bolt upright. Professor Stroulger entered the classroom. He was old, short, and slightly rotund.

"Okay class, welcome to your first Potions class. I am Professor Stroulger, the Potions Master. Today we will start with the Wiggenweld Potion. The instructions are on page two of your textbook Once you are finished, the potion needs to sit open to air for at least eighteen hours. It is due on Friday. If you have any questions, consult me. Begin." He strolled over to his desk, sat down, and pulled out paperwork. Sirius got the ingredients. He was working with James, and Remus chose to work alone, as did Snape.

Snape was the first to finish. He proudly raised his hand. Professor Stroulger looked into the cauldron and smiled at its creamy, baby blue color. Sirius and James began to count down.

"10...9..."

"Good job Mr. Snape. Five points for Slytherin."

"...7...6..."

"Everyone, this is what your potion should look like when your done today."

"...3...2..." The professor and Snape left the cauldron to get a flask. "...1!" Sirius and James leaned forward and spat in Snape's potion. It sizzled and became a murky brown. Professor Stroulger and Snape returned to the cauldron.

"Okay," Professor Stroulger shouted angrily, "somebody spat in this potion! Who did it?" Sirius raised his hand.

"I'm afraid, professor," he began, "that you spat in it."

"You see, professor," James continued while gesticulating, "You sometimes spit when you talk."

"I-I do?"

"I'm not sure if we're the only ones to notice." James told him.

"Well, its better that you know now." Sirius convinced him.

"Yes, I suppose." Professor Stroulger was now covering his mouth. "I'm terribly sorry, Mr. Snape. I'll still give you full credit." Snape nodded silently. James put the last of the chopped dittany into the potion. It too was a perfect potion.

"YES!" Sirius and James raised their arms in mock worship. "Yes! We have made Wiggenweld!" The professor praised them for their excellent work. Peter approached Professor Stroulger's desk for the umpteenth time.

"Sir, is the flobberworm mucus supposed to be slimey?"

"For the last time, Mr. Pettigrew," Professor Stroulger's hand was still near his face, "all of the ingredients are fine! There is nothing wrong with them!"

"How can you be sure?" Peter retaliated. In response, Professor Stroulger took ten points off Peter's potion grade.

* * *

A/N: While reading the "worshipping the potion" scene, just think of the scene in Cast Away when Tom Hanks first made fire ("I HAVE MADE FIRE!") Please review! holds up sign that says, "Will write for reviews!"

**Preview of Chapter Five**

"How far down is the second floor?"


	5. The One With the Money

A/N:  Hey, we're back.  Sorry that this chapter took so long.  Our computer got a virus on the hard drive and we had too wipe the memory blank.  Luckily, we had a rough draft of this chapter in our room.  Anyway, to respond to our reviews: 

Blue Eyes At Midnight- Yeah, you've been taking French longer than we have (we're in our third year, but we plan to take it in all of our years in high school and college).

siriuszsecretlover- Thank you for the nice review!

Red English Rose- Yes, Peter is a strange kid, but he just might grow out of it...

je suis une pizza-  Hey, another French speaker!  Thanks for the review.

brenngt14-  blushes Thank you!  I hope that you enjoy this new chapter just as much as you did with the others.  We'll try to update more quickly.  We know that this one took a long time.

Kamden- Yes, Peter will eventually become their friend, but you will see how in chapters eight and nine.

freakin-person- Wow, lots of people put this fic under "favorites stories"?  We're glad that you loved the story too.

Alteng- Yeah!  Four reviews!  Peter is dim now, but once he starts hanging around Sirius, James, and Remus, he will eventually catch on.  He also has some tricks up his sleeve (like in chapter nine).  Peter plays a very pivotal role in this fanfiction too.

* * *

Chapter Five: The One With the Money

"This first month seemed to drag on forever, hasn't it?" Remus said one dull Saturday afternoon. Sirius sighed in agreement.

"Do we have any _more_ homework to do?" James asked. Sirius shook his head.

"I'm bored. We need something to talk about." James looked at Remus and smiled, "How's the family?"

"Good. Haven't gotten an owl from them saying that someone's died or something."

"What are they like?"

"Nice, I guess. My dad works for the Ministry in the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures Department. My mum is a lawyer."

"She is a what?" Sirius asked.

"A lawyer. She goes to court with clients and she defends them. In court, she and the other lawyer argue over the case and..." Remus stopped explaining once he saw James and Sirius's confused looks, "she's a Muggle, by the way."

"Oh, you're a half-blood? I didn't know that." said James. Remus shrugged.

"I never thought that it mattered. My mum's sister is a Muggleborn, so the whole 'wizard' thing wasn't a big shock for her when she dated my dad. In fact, my aunt introduced my dad to my mum."

"How did your aunt and your dad know each other?" Sirius asked out of curiosity.

"They were Head Boy and Head Girl together." Remus said, "He was in Ravenclaw, and she was in Hufflepuff."

"That's cool," James stated, "my dad was in Ravenclaw too. Mum was a Gryffindor."

"You're a pureblood then?" questioned Sirius. James nodded in response.

"The funny thing about our family is that all of the men look like their fathers, but we all have our mothers' eyes and noses." Peter popped out of nowhere, at least that was what it seemed like.

"That's cool. My parents are purebloods too, but my dad's a squib."

"Peter, what are you doing?" inquired Sirius.

"I'm talking with you guys," Peter piped up, "that's what friends do!"

"Peter," James said slowly, "we are not your friends."

"When are you guys gonna move out of Phase Two?" Peter sighed.

"Phase Two?" The three of them wondered out loud.

"That's _denial._" Peter explained. Sirius, James, and Remus raised an eyebrow at each other. "My father taught me the 'Four Steps of Friendship': meeting, denial, proving worthy, and then friendship."

"Sounds like his father was a loser too." James whispered to the other two. Sirius snickered quietly, and Remus merely smiled. A pang of guilt quickly swept his smile off his face.

"Ya know, my dad used the 'Four Steps of Friendship' to win my mum over."

"What? You want to marry us?" Sirius asked jestingly.

"No! I don't want to marry ever!" The three boys pushed Peter into their dormitory.

"Now that Peter's gone," James turned to Sirius, "it's your turn."

"Yes," Remus joined in, "everybody acts funny around you. Why is that?" Sirius sat down and brushed his dark hair out of his face. James and Remus sat across from him.

"My family is a family of rich, arrogant Slytherins," he began, "almost every Black lives by the same Muggle-hating, snotty principles. My family tried to raise me to be like that as well. And I was for a few years, until I become friends with a Muggle. Before long, I secretly had many Muggle friends. If my folks found out, I would have been disowned." Sirius pulled a golden ring off of his finger. "This is a Black Family ring. All Blacks have it, and it's supposed to be worn on the middle finger of the right hand. I've worn this since the day I was born. It's enchanted to fit only me, and it grows when I do." He handed Remus the ring. James looked at it over his shoulder.

"See? The outside has my name, and the inside has the family crest and the Slytherin serpent." James watched the snake move around the ring, stop for a moment to flick its tongue out and to glare at Sirius, and then continuing it's never interminable cycle. "It's been angry at me ever since I got into Gryffindor." Sirius slipped the ring back on his finger.

"How rich is your family?"

"Extremely rich."

"Richer than the Murphys?"

"Yes."

"How do you know?" Remus asked him.

"Rich people like to brag." Sirius said, blushing furiously.

"Are you guys richer than the Crowes?"

"Yes." Sirius rolled his eyes.

"The Elbersons?" Sirius grabbed one of the throw pillows and covered his face ashamedly.

"Yes." He muffled.

"The Knightleys?"

"Yes."

"The Malfoys?"

"Shut up, both of you!" Sirius removed the pillow from his face. "You guys are so irritating!"

"But are you?" James persisted. Sirius laughed uneasily.

"Yes."

"Man! You guys are rich!" Peter exclaimed as he poked his head out from behind the couch.

"Peter? How did- weren't you in the dormitory?"

"I was."

"How did you get out without us seeing you?"

"I crept out, Remus _duh_."

"Why?"

"Well, rich person, we weren't done hanging out."

"You know what, Peter? You're right," James said, "we need to hang out. We'll meet you at the library in five minutes."

"Okay!" With that said, Peter walked off. Sirius turned to James.

"We're not really meeting at the library are we?"

"No," James scoffed, "he probably won't even find the library. I reckon he's never been in the library before."

"He's a strange kid." Remus added.

"Obviously! Did you hear how he makes friends? He stalks people until they give up!" Sirius exclaimed.

"Let's go outside."

"Yeah."

* * *

Peter was wandering around the fifth floor, nowhere near the library. He was hopelessly lost in the castle in which he had been living for the past month. He soon spotted a fellow Gryffindor across the hall. Peter took a deep breath and decided to ask for directions.

"Excuse me, but where is this so-called 'library?'" He asked as politely as he could.

"Huh?" The Gryffindor boy frowned. "We have a library?" Peter shrugged.

"That's what I heard."

"I dunno. Find it yourself." He left without the least bit of concern. Peter looked about hopefully for another student. He found a single, Hufflepuff girl. She seemed irate and was storming in Peter's direction.

"Hey, you're that Pettigrew kid who insulted Hufflepuffs on the first day!" She accused menacingly. "You will rue the day that you made us look bad!" She grabbed Peter and stuffed him in the nearest trash can.

* * *

It was a beautiful day outside on the Hogwarts grounds. Three Hufflepuff first years were jumping into piles of newly fallen leaves. A few students were watching a pair of Ravenclaw girls play a prolonged game of Wizard's Chess. Frank Longbottom and Alice Perkins, two fourth year students, were talking under an oak tree. Several students were playing "Who Can Get the Closest to the Whomping Willow Without Getting Killed?" And Snape was engrossed in a book on the other side of the lake. Sirius smiled at James and the pair sent spells at the water. Two giant waves glided across the surface of the lake and drenched Snape. He angrily put down his sopping book and hurled a stone at Sirius and James. He missed.

"Lighten up, Severus!" Sirius called, "We're just joking around!"

"We didn't mean anything." James added.

"Shut up, shitface!" Snape shouted back.

"Woah, woah!" James exclaimed as he cupped his hands over his ears. "My ears!"

"You just shot his virgin ears!" accused Sirius as he helped James cover his ears.

"What's your problem?" James inquired.

"You three idiots won't leave me alone!" Snape yelled.

"Leave me out of this," Remus finally said, "please."

* * *

Peter climbed out of the trash can once he decided that the coast was clear. He pulled the Drooble's Best Blowing Gum off his cloak and continued to wander aroundthe fifth floor. A Ravenclaw girl was reading a book to his right. _She must know where the library is_, Peter thought.

"Do you know where the library is?"

"Don't you?"

"No." Peter said sheepishly. She sighed.

"Second and third floor."

"We have two libraries?!"

"No, it's two stories."

"The library has only two books?!"

"No! It has two floors, two levels, with a staircase." she said slowly to make sure he got it.

"Oh good. That would be quite a pathetic library if there were only two books. So, what floor are we on?"

"Fifth."

"How far down is the second floor?" The girl groaned at his question and continued to read, ignoring Peter.

* * *

"I know it was you who spat in my potion, jinxed my wand in Charms, and blew up my lunch the other day!"

"And you play no part in this?" Sirius retorted. "You always retaliate, and push us in the hallways."

"You won't move!"

"We would if you asked!" James responded.

"I won't even bother!" shouted Snape.

"C'mon," Remus gestured for the other two to follow. "Let's watch the Hufflepuff Quidditch Team practice."

"Why? Quidditch is just a silly sport." James complained, but he went along anyway.

* * *

Peter had finally found the library. There was a problem, however. Peter never found his "friends." Even worse, Peter couldn't find the exit. He, again, was lost. He didn't want to ask for directions, because he feared that he would by yelled at again, or dumped in another trash can.

"They need one of those, um, non signs that say 'Exit.'"

"_Neon_," said a Muggleborn girl next to him, "a neon sign." And then she walked off.

Around one o' clock the following morning, Peter finally found his dormitory.

* * *

A/N:  Did you like the title?  I mean, Sirius is "The One With the Money." laughs  Okay, that joke sucked.  Don't be confused about James's opinion of Quidditch right now, you'll have to read more of this story to see what happens that causes him to change his mind.

**Preview for Chapter Six**

_"It'll be a nice note."_


	6. The One With the Howler

A/N: Hello peoples of the world! Sorry for the wait; we've been practicing really hard for the volleyball club tryouts (TVA, to be exact). Now, for the reviews:

brenngt14- The shop owners bow to Sirius because his family is not only very rich, but they are very powerful and influential. Obviously, no one would want to get on their bad side.

siriuszsecretlover- Yuppers! Snape's a punk and Peter's a loser! lol!

Saeble- We're glad that you enjoyed it!

Alteng- Don't worry, Remus, Sirius, and James will warm up to Peter after awhile, and James will warm up to Quidditch.

caitiedeezer- Yup, gotta love Cast Away. Thanks for clearing up the typo too!

Top Bitch- You're right, Peter wasn't always an idiot, but he is eleven. He will mature and grow out of it. Besides, this is a comedy, so some things will be slightly exaggerated, but it will mostly stay true to what is known about the Marauders. The Marauders will accept them into their group, but not many people become instant friends, even the Marauders aren't that close yet (haven't you noticed that they have been keeping secrets from each other?). About Remus being a werewolf, we are going to make it obvious, but the year just began. Didn't you read the part where Dumbledore speaks to Remus privately? He was discussing some time table error (that was a cover-up to Sirius and James), he was telling Remus about the Shrieking Shack, the Whomping Willow, etc. Not everything will happen in the first year. Besides all of that, thank you for your review. We hope that you're inquiries were cleared up.

Red English Rose- Yeah, we loved Peter's little adventure.

freakin-person- Hehe, here's the next update! We're glad that you were in a good mood.

danielle- Hey Danielle! Thanks for the review!

Kamden- Yes, it is interesting...

* * *

Chapter Six: The One With the Howler

"I don't believe it!" Sirius groaned. "Classes today?! We just can't have classes today." James looked up from the school newsletter curiously.

"Sirius, today is Thursday. Why wouldn't we have classes today?"

"It's a holiday. That should mean that we don't have to go to class or something." Sirius responded. James shook his head and he placed the newsletter down carefully.

"What holiday?"

"Thanksgiving. Okay, I know that it is an American holiday, but shouldn't we have a day to be thankful for no school too?"

"Yeah, we should." James agreed, stirring his oatmeal excitedly.

"We should sign a petition. Am I right, Remus? Remus?!" Sirius jerked his head to look down at the weary visage of Remus. Remus was sound asleep. Sirius got aggravated and he began pinching Remus's shoulder repeatedly until his hand was swatted away and Remus was sitting upright. His shoulders were slouched forward; his eyes were unfocused.

"Why are you so tired? What did you do last night?" inquired James.

"I was, um, at St. Mungos." Remus said after a prolonged yawn.

"Why?"

"Er, I was visiting my sick mum."

"Wow," Peter cut in, "You must really care for her to have done that!"

"Peter," said Sirius, "What are you doing?"

"We're talking," exclaimed Peter, "That's what friends do, of course!"

"We're not your friends!" James said. Peter rolled his eyes.

"You're still in Phase Two?"

"Peter, explain to me this," Sirius began, "but how could we have changed since you woke us up at three o' clock in the morning?!"

"I was cold." whined Peter.

"So you woke us up and asked us to give you our blanket?"

"Well, a _friend_ would have given up a blanket..."

"Peter! We are not your friends. You still haven't answered Sirius's question, and... oh, never mind. Just drop it, okay?" Peter then stood up and dropped his plate.

* * *

"Let's sit here." said Sirius. He was pointing to three seats in the third row. James and Remus didn't budge.

"Sirius, are you alright?"

"Yeah, why?"

"Because," Remus began, "you always pick the back row to be as far away from the professor as possible. Now you want to sit in the front of the classroom?" Sirius smiled sheepishly.

"Well, I wanted to ask out Lauren Stevens, and she usually sits in the second row." Peter popped up from behind them.

"You want a girlfriend? Aren't we still a bit young for that?" he asked.

"Peter! Where did you come from?"

"My mum told me that most of her family comes from Sweden." Sirius and James looked at him as if he was a complete nutcase. Professor Flitwick entered the classroom and the trio shooed Peter away. The professor started a long lecture on the Flipendo spell.

"You wanted to ask a girl out during class?" Remus said.

"I wanted to do it before dinner, and this is the first that I have seen of her today. I was hoping that we would be having a practical lesson today, since Flitwick is lecturing, I better write a note."

"So this is why you were mad about there being classes today." Remus stated.

"You were listening to me this morning!"

"A note?!" James nearly shouted. "Sirius, come on, that is definitely not the best way to- "

"It'll be a nice note."

"Let me read it when you're done."

"Don't talk when I'm talking Mr. Potter. Next time, I will deduct points." the miniscule teacher squeaked.

"Yes, sir." James said obediently. Sirius then pulled out a piece of parchment and a quill. Remus snorted softly and shook his head.

"I still can't believe that you are going to write the note."

"Mm-hm." It took Sirius less than two minutes to finish the note. James snatched it away and began to read it.

"Sirius, you can't give Lauren this."

"Why not?"

"'You're the only First Year with boobs.' Sirius, please."

"What? It's true."

"Look at this here: 'I like your hips.' Would you be happy if a girl said the fact that you had nice hips was the reason why she liked you?"

"Yes."

"At least say something about her personality."

"Oh yeah, gotta add that." Sirius scribbled another sentence onto the note. Remus read the letter as soon as it was finished.

"That's all?"

"That's what I told him." James stated in agreement.

"There must be something very interesting on that parchment, otherwise you'd be listening to my lecture." said a voice behind Sirius. "Would you kindly share it with the class?" Sirius shrugged.

"Sure." James gaped at him.

"Are you insane?" he whispered hoarsely. Either Sirius didn't hear him, or he had selective hearing. He walked over to Lauren and placed the note on her desk. She blushed and read it out loud. There was a chorus of "awww" from all of the girls once Lauren had finished the note.

"That was so sweet! I would love to go out with you."

* * *

Sirius and Lauren seated themselves next to each other at the dinner table, and Remus and James across from them. Peter, to Remus's displeasure, was seated to his right. Peter was making such a mess while eating that it caused Remus and several onlookers to lose their appetites. A silver hawk soon flew in the Great Hall, a Howler clutched in its talons. It circled over the Gryffindor Table.

"Wow," Peter exclaimed, his mouth full of chicken. He swallowed, "whose hawk is that? They are so rare!"

"Whoever owns it is getting a Howler." said James excitedly. Sirius wasn't as pleased.

"That's my hawk, Artemis. I guess that's my Howler too." Sirius groaned, his eyes following his Howler as it was dropped into his lap. He picked up the Howler and carefully tore the scarlet envelope. It let out a terrible shriek.

"WHY DID YOU LET YOURSELF BE PLACED IN GRYFFINDOR?! YOU ARE A BLACK! HOW COULD YOU DO THIS TO US?! YOU HAVE PUT OUR NAME IN SHAME BY CONVERSING WITH MUDBLOOD TRASH! WORST OF ALL WAS THAT I DIDN'T HERE THIS APALLING BIT OF NEW FIRST FROM YOU! IN FACT, YOU DIDN'T EVEN TELL ME! WERE YOU PLANNING ON TELLING ME EVER, YOU FOUL BOY! THERESA SNAPE TOLD ME, BY THE WAY," Snape began hitting his head on the Slytherin Table, wondering why he ever told his mother, "AND SHE ALSO TOLD ME THAT YOU'VE HAD MUGGLE FRIENDS FOR YEARS! AND BEHIND YOU OWN MOTHER'S BACK! YOU ARE AN UNGRATEFUL, HORRID CHILD! DON'T EXPECT TO BE ACCEPTED BACK INTO THE BLACK HOUSEHOLD THIS SUMMER, YOU FILTHY GRYFFINDOR!" Sirius sat there, pale and wide-eyed. He inhaled sharply.

"Well, looks like I can't go home now." he said jokingly.

"So _that's_ a Howler," Remus said, "my dad told me about them, but I have never seen one until now."

"And I have never seen a silver hawk before. They are so rare, and so much faster than owls." Lauren stated admirably as she gazed at the hawk perched on Sirius's shoulder.

"Can I touch your hawk? He is so cool!" Peter said. He reached his hand out to touch the magnificent bird. The hawk snapped at him, and Peter luckily withdrew his hand in time.

"She. Artemis is a girl" Sirius explained as he gave some leftover chicken to his hawk. "Artemis gets a little touchy on that topic."

* * *

A/N: Just to let you know, the silver hawk is our high school's mascot. Go Silver Hawks! Woohoo! Anyway, please review. The more reviews we get, the more we will write.

**Preview for Chapter Seven**

"He can't tell the difference between a novel and real life!"


	7. The One With the Igloo

A/N: Voila! C'est chapitre prochaine! Since it's Thanksgiving Day, we are going to post up this chapter so that there is something for you guys to be thankful for! Now, to respond to the reviews:

siriuszsecretlover-Yep, Sirius will never get rejected because of his hotness, and Peter will always get rejected (okay, maybe not _always_) because of his mega dorkiness.

Jays- Yay! We're someone's favorite author (or one of them)! marks a tally on our chart Okay, we don't have a tally chart, but thank you for the review!

brenngt14- Don't worry, the chapters will get longer as the Marauders get older. Unfortunately, this one is pretty short, but chapter eight is pretty long.

Dyana- Aww, thanks!

Alteng- Yes, the Blacks are very aristocratic, pompous, arrogant,haughty, the list goes on (wow, there are a lot of words to describe them). You will get to meet them in the first chapter of Year Three (oh, the suspense).

caitiedeezer- No, Lauren will not be an important character to this story. She is just the first in the line of many random girlfriends he will have, and he doesn't stick with them vary long. He won't have a real relationship until he matures.We have someone special for Sirius later, and you won't see it coming. Go Silver Hawks! Woohoo!

Saeble- It's alright, I love responding to reviews!

Kamden- Sirius will be staying with James and his family over the summer, but that will be in chapters eleven and twelve.

Silverfox9- Hi Silverfox9! waves We're really glad that you liked it so far.

Red English Rose- Yes we both made it to the club! Woohoo!

Marauder4eva-Heck, I would think that it is sweet as long as it was Sirius giving it to me! He's so sexy! As for a prank idea, how about making a teacher or a student lie uncontrollably (preferably Professor Naylor, gosh he's dreadful).

Chapter Seven: The One With the Igloo

"It's Christmas! It's Christmas! It's Christmas! It's Christmas! It's Christmas! Get up! Get up! Get up! Get up! Get up, Remus, get up!"

"What time is it, Peter?" said Remus while rubbing his eyes.

"It's 5:52!"

"Why are you waking us up this early?" asked James.

"Because it's Christmas!" Peter reasoned. "Sirius, get up!"

"I _am_ up."

"You're still lying down."

"Can we all just go back to sleep?" James whined. Peter shook his head.

"Nah, we have presents. C'mon! I wanna know what you guys think of my presents to you!"

"Peter got us presents?" Sirius whispered to the other two.

"I feel really guilty now. We didn't get him anything." Remus said. Sirius shrugged it off as if it was nothing. Peter led them into the common room. The floor was cluttered with torn wrapping paper and presents tossed aside. Peter had obviously gotten a go at the presents, and a few girls were up early opening their gifts as well. Sirius flashed a flirty smile at the girls. They blushed and giggled furiously.

"Sirius, what are you doing?" Remus whispered fiercely.

"What? Am I doing something wrong?" replied Sirius coolly.

"Yeah! Aren't you dating Jenn?" said James.

"So? It's not as if I was kissing those girls. I just smiled at them."

"You were still flirting with those girls with that smile of yours." Remus reasoned. Sirius shook his head.

"No, I was just smiling. That's what friendly, pleasant people do, as you should be aware." Sirius retorted and then smiled at his companion. Remus sighed and looked down at the sloppily wrapped present that was thrown into his lap. James and Sirius received the same gift.

"Open them!" Peter requested excitedly. Remus, James, and Sirius did as they were told. The more they uncovered of their gifts, the more they wished they could cover them back up. Sirius held his gift in his hand, and the others followed the same suit. The gifts flopped over limply in their hands. As they looked at it, they wondered what it exactly was.

"They're coasters, for your cups! I made them myself!"

"Wow, coasters." Sirius said sarcastically. He whispered to James "so that's what they are. These 'coasters' are so lumpy that cups probably wouldn't stay on them."

"So, Remus, still feel guilty?" asked James.

"No, not really, but what are we going to give Peter?"

"Do we have give Peter something?" James inquired.

"Yes!" Remus demanded.

"Alright, what do we give him?" James retaliated. He smugly folded his arms. Sirius pointed to himself as if he had a plan. He cleared his throat.

"Um, Peter, about your gifts. We didn't wrap them. We got caught up in our homework, so we never got the time to do it. We can go do it now if you like."

"Okay! Hurry! I can't wait!" Peter clapped his hands with excitement. James and Remus followed Sirius into their dormitory, the coasters in their hands.

"Sirius, what is this plan of yours?" questioned Remus.

"Okay, listen to the whole plan before you judge. That goes especially for you." Sirius pointedly glanced at Remus. "We give Peter our new coaster and tell him that we bought them from a store. It solves two problems: he gets presents, and we don't have to keep his." Sirius explained as he rummaged around inside his trunk. Remus's jaw dropped as he stared incredulously at Sirius.

"How are we going to pull that off?"

"It can't be that hard."

"Can't you come up with anything better?"

"I'd like to see you try."

"He made those coasters, didn't you hear him?"

"No."

"But still, wouldn't he be able to realize that his 'gifts' were the ones he-"

"It's Peter!"

"He could still tell!"

"He can't tell the difference between a novel and real life!"

"QUIET!" James shouted over the feud. "Your row is bloody stupid and utterly ridiculous. Now, let's sort this issue out. Sorry Remus, but I agree with Sirius. Peter is very dim, and he will never know. Besides, it's the best that we can do now. Do you reckon we could wrap them in parchment?" James and Sirius quickly wrapped their coasters and they passed some parchment on to Remus, who reluctantly took it and wrapped his too.

"Okay Peter, here you go." James said as the three of them passed their presents to him. Peter attacked the wrapping parchment with such a ravenous manner that made the trio jump back in alarm.

"Oh wow! Coasters! They look just like the ones I made too!" Peter stated eagerly as he gazed at his 'new' coasters. Sirius nodded to Remus, clearly pleased with his 'noble' work.

"See? I told you it would work." he whispered in Remus's ear.

"We should use our new coasters! Where are yours?" Peter inquired, looking around the room like a panorama.

"Uh, well, um…" James inarticulately mumbled.

"Go get them now!" Peter said excitedly. Remus leaned over to Sirius.

"See? I told you it wouldn't work."

"Sirius," James whispered, "you got us into this mess. You fix it."

"Hey! You back me up, and why should I-"

"Aren't you guys gonna get your coaster?" Peter interrupted. There was a short silence as Peter waited for a response. Remus decided that the truth was the only option.

"We can't, Peter, because we-"

"We love those coasters so much that we have put them in a special place in our trunks." Sirius recovered quickly.

"We don't want to lose them." James added. Peter nodded understandingly.

"Oh, okay. I'll just use the ones you guys gave me." Peter hopped over to the water pitcher.

* * *

Once the three of them had finished opening their Christmas gifts, they ventured out to the Hogwarts grounds. Snow was piled up three feet high, and Remus, Sirius, and James were among the few outside. 

"Hey! Do you know what those um, uh, small Muggle house things are called?"

"They're still called houses, James." Remus pointed out. James shook his head, making his already untidy hair even messier.

"No, they're also made out of snow, and they are round, and-"

"Oh, igloos!"

"Igloos?" Sirius snorted, "That's a strange name."

"Why don't we make one? It could be a good hideaway from Peter." James suggested. The latter agreed and the trio started piling up the snow. Actually, James and Sirius piled up snow. Remus made something out of it. They spent twenty minutes painstakingly building an igloo in the frigid snow. Once their igloo was complete, they stood back to admire their work.

"It's lopsided." Sirius confessed. The other two nodded in silent agreement. Remus scanned the vast grounds, and a thought popped into his head.

"James, I just thought of something. How is our igloo going to keep Peter from bothering us when it sticks out like a sore thumb?" Remus mentioned.

"Well, we can make more." advised Sirius.

"You mean, _I'll_ make more." Remus corrected.

"Exactly."

* * *

"Do you think we made enough igloos?" asked James. Sirius counted the slightly deformed igloos. 

"We only have twelve. Maybe three more…"

"No. My hands are practically frozen anyway. I think this is good." Remus assured them. They crawled into the igloo farthest from the castle. It was just barely large enough for all three to sit down in it. Sirius looked around with a pleased expression on his face.

"You know," Sirius stated, "this would be a great place for Jenn and me to hang out."

"You mean, a great place to snog?" laughed James.

"No, we do more than just that."

"Like what?" Remus retorted.

"Well, we talk." Remus and James chortled.

"Sure, Sirius." James said. Remus pulled out his book and began to read. James rolled his eyes in annoyance.

"Remus, put that away." ordered James.

"I'm doing my homework."

"We don't have homework."

"Yeah, we do. We have to study."

"You don't need to study. The material is so easy." James droned.

"But-"

"I'll take that," Sirius wrenched the book out of Remus's grasp, "you shouldn't be studying on Christmas. You shouldn't be studying on the holidays in the first place." Remus sighed impatiently.

"Alright." After a few minutes, Remus heard a grunt from outside their igloo. He poked his head out and saw Peter on his hands and knees, trying to get in their igloo.

"Hey Remus! Nice house thing, but why did you make so many? It doesn't matter, I know exactly which one you were in!"

"How?!" Remus asked as Peter let himself in the igloo. Sirius and James groaned and they scooted over to give Peter room. "How?" Remus repeated

"I smelled you guys out. In fact, I have an excellent sense of smell. My nose has saved my life several times. I'll tell you the history of my nose…"

"Let's sneak out." suggested James.

"How are we going to do that without Peter noticing?" Remus whispered.

"…when I was five, I didn't know what time it was one day…"

"I got an idea." Sirius said, "Hey Peter! You see that area of snow over there? If you stare at it long and hard, you will see something different."

"Okay, but can I keep telling you about my nose?"

"That would be great!" enthused Remus. As Peter rambled on, the trio crawled out. James grabbed mounds of snow and began placing it in front of the igloo's entrance.

"What are you doing James?" Remus asked James.

"I'm blocking this entrance off. Don't worry," he added once he saw Remus's concerned expression, "he could easily break away the snow. I just want to see how long it takes for him to figure that out."

"…and she said 'Yes dear, we are having dinner!' If I never found out, I might've starved! And when I was six…"

"Faster!" commanded James.

"We are!" Sirius and Remus shouted in unison.

"…and that's how I found my friend in the woods. Guys, I still don't see the thing in the snow."

"Keep looking!" Sirius bellowed.

"Okay. Anyway, when I was eight, I got lost in Diagon Alley. There were so many people, and I couldn't see my mum. I knew she was going to the bookstore, but I didn't know where that was either. So, I smelled my way to Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlor. Once I got there, I asked for directions. They pointed me straight to the bookshop that my mum was shopping in! Oh! I see it! You know, the thing in the snow."

"What was in the snow?" Remus questioned. Sirius shrugged; he apparently didn't know either.

"This is so cool!" Peter continued, "It's a dragon eating a doughnut. Or maybe it's a bagel. What do you think it is?" Peter turned to face Sirius, but he wasn't there. No one else was there. "Guys? Where are you? Why is there snow blocking my way out? Oh no! I'm trapped! I'm going to freeze to death! I can already not feel my toes! I'm gonna starve too! Maybe I can eat the snow." He scooped a handful of snow and nibbled on it. "It tastes like water."

"Yeah, Peter," Remus called out, "it's _just_ water." There was a pause.

"Oh, not anymore."

* * *

A/N: We are thankful for Jesus, our family, reviews, friends, reviewers, making it to the volleyball team, fanfiction, and people who read our story and respond to it. For fun, tell all what you are thankful for in your review.

**Preview of Chapter Eight**

"And please put Mr. Lupin down, Mr. Downey."


	8. The One Where Sirius Flips

A/N: Hey guys! Sorry it's been so long! We hada few connection problems and lots of AP homework. We won't delay you any further, and now, we'll respond to our wonderful reviewers! 

TheBeautifulLetDown- We love to make people laugh! It's great to know that you had trouble stopping. In fact, we encourage continuous laughter! :D

brenngt14- It's great that you're such a thankful person! About Peter and the other three becoming friends; just read this chapter and see what might happen...

Saeble- We don't mind short reviews. We appreciate your effort to express your enjoyment of our story!

Marauder4eva- Your welcome! We're glad to help! Your story rocks!

caitiedeezer- Lol! "Regifters!" That's so funny! We're glad you loved the igloo scene. We did too! See you at school!

Alteng-You're on vacation? Where are you? Please tell us the details! Peter didn't go home because he wanted to spend the vacation with his new "friends," as did James.

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Chapter Eight: The One Where Sirius Flips

"How is it that you guys can get higher than me on the History of Magic test when I studied and you didn't even pick up your books? And I know you didn't cheat because you guys were isolated from the rest of the class because of your talking. It's surprising that Professor Binns caught you talking in the first place!" ranted Remus. He was holding two 98 tests and a 94 test in his hands. Sirius snatched his test back.

"The test wasn't that hard. The professor discussed the material well, you shouldn't have to study if you listened," he commented, "but I am surprised that I got number fourteen wrong."

"I know," said James as he took his parchment back from Remus, "I think I deserve full credit on number fourteen."

"James, you said 'A,' but the answer was 'D.'" Remus pointed out.

"Those choices were exactly the same, only worded differently."

"Wow! You guys got A's? I got a 62. Can I check my answers with your tests?" Peter grunted as he crawled out from under the professor's desk.

"Peter, what were you doing under there? Were you spying on us again?" Remus asked.

"No, I was actually hiding from some Fifth Year Hufflepuffs. Oh no! They're coming back! Help me, for that's what friends do!" Peter whimpered and jumped behind the desk.

"We're not your- hello, how can we help you?" James said pleasantly to three large Hufflepuffs.

"Did you see where that Pettigrew kid went?" asked the largest of the three.

"Er… he went that way." Remus claimed, pointing in a random direction. The Hufflepuffs sprinted down the hall in the direction Remus indicated. Peter jumped up and jogged over to Remus.

"Thanks! If you ever get in a sticky situation… I'll run and get a professor, because that's what friends do!"

"Peter, we're not your friends." groaned James.

"Yet." Peter finished. "C'mon guys! When are you going to ask me to prove myself worthy? Give me a difficult task!"

"Alright Peter, this is what we want you to do: you must pull a major prank involving the Slytherins. The prank has to be a creative one." Sirius ordered.

"That's easy!"

"You have to do something special with Snape too." James added.

"That's still easy." Peter said with less eagerness.

"And you, er, have to, erm, have to…" Sirius stuttered.

"Include the sixth year Hufflepuff girls." Remus interrupted.

"Now that's hard! I'm gonna go and get to work on that." Peter stated as he made his way towards the common room. The three of them waited until Peter was completely out earshot.

"Nice one, Remus!" Sirius complimented. Remus smiled, but it soon faded. The three Hufflepuffs from earlier were storming in their direction.

"Not them again!" Groaned James. The largest one grabbed Remus by the collar and pulled him closer.

"Tell me the truth! Where is the fat, little runt?!"

"I, I don't know!" Remus lied. The fifth year's grip tightened

"You're lying." He accused, showing his uneven teeth menacingly.

"Hey! Leave him alone! He hasn't done anything wrong!" Sirius shouted. The other two Hufflepuffs glared down at him.

"Yes he has. He lied to protect his filthy, little friend."

"He's not our-" James began. He stopped himself from finishing that sentence. "Can you at least put Remus down?"

"Maybe later."

"No," said Sirius, "how about now?" Sirius swung a punch at the Hufflepuff thug holding Remus. He ducked in time, but Sirius's punch hit the Hufflepuff on the right. The boy with the now bleeding nose aimed a punch at Sirius. Sirius grabbed his book and managed to block it. The other lackey hit Sirius in the back of his head with his sack. James rammed his shoulder into the burly Hufflepuff. From that point, no one could remember what happened until Professor McGonagall intervened.

"What is going on here?" The Professor shouted. A Hufflepuff had Sirius in a headlock, and Sirius's wand was pointed at his opponent's groin. James's adversary had his hands on James's neck. James was sticking his wand up the Hufflepuff's nose. The largest Hufflepuff had Remus hoisted over his bulky shoulder.

"That will be ten points from each of you, and if I catch you fighting again, I will give you a detention." McGonagall warned them. The students nodded obediently. "And please put Mr. Lupin down, Mr. Downey."

"Which one is he?" Downey asked stupidly, with a struggling Remus on his shoulder.

"The one you are holding." Downey nodded and not so carefully put Remus down. The Hufflepuffs each shot one last glare at the trio and left.

"Let's go to the Hospital Wing. I'm sore all over." James complained

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"What happened to you boys?" Madam Pomfrey asked with an air of annoyance.

"We got into a fight." Remus said. Color rushed into his pale cheeks. Madam Pomfrey sighed and indicated for them to sit.

"Third fight today, and its not even lunch yet. First it was Miss Moore and her boyfriend, then it was Miss Black and Miss Carver, and then you three." she mumbled to herself loudly as she pulled items out of cabinets.

"We didn't fight each other." Sirius corrected. She didn't hear, and she continued her rant.

"I hope you three didn't hurt anyone other than yourselves. Earlier today, Miss Black sent a spell at Miss Carver but missed. She hit Miss Evans instead." James sat bolt upright at this statement.

"What happened to her? Is she hurt? Is she still here?"

"She's over there. She was hit with a spell that I am unfamiliar with." Madam Pomfrey explained. James jumped up and trotted over to Lily. Lily's dazzling green eyes followed him, as he got closer.

"Hey, what happened?" he asked. She opened her mouth and blue flames issued out. James leapt back in alarm. Lily closed her mouth and smiled apologetically.

"I guess everyone has to be careful when talking to you, huh." James joked. Lily smiled and signaled for James to back up. He kept walking back until he hit the wall.

"Why are you here?" she asked. When she spoke, the blue flames turned black, and James could feel the heat brush his cheek.

"Remus, Sirius, and I got into a fight with some big Hufflepuffs."

"How?" Lily asked. Her flames caught the bed on fire. She quickly grabbed the water pitcher by her bedside and doused the blaze.

"They thought we lied about where Peter went. I don't know what they wanted with him, but they weren't happy." James explained.

"Were you lying?" questioned Lily, who was now aiming her flames up towards the roof.

"Well…yeah." confessed James.

"I think that it was kind and noble of you to stand up for Peter."

"We weren't- we _were_, and we couldn't just let some guys pick on Peter." James could hear Sirius cough something that sounded like "liar."

"You don't have that many bruises, that's good." Lily commented.

"Yeah, neither does Sirius, but Remus-"

"Sirius? Sirius Black?" said Terri Carver, "Is he still here? I heard that he was single."

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"Can you believe that we missed two classes over a couple bruises?" Sirius laughed as the trio changed for the night.

"I know." Remus agreed.

"Well, it took a long time for Madam Pomfrey to figure out how to heal Lily. After Lily, she dealt with us." said James. Remus exhaled sharply and gazed out at the early night sky. His eyes widened with fear.

"Crap! I forgot!"

"What?" Sirius asked innocently.

"I gotta go." Remus said as his limbs were shaking. He sprinted out of the dormitory.

"WOW, HE REALLY NEEDS TO GO!" boomed a voice from inside the closet. Peter stepped out smiling.

"Peter, what were you doing in there?" James questioned.

"I WAS CHANGING!" bellowed Peter in a loud voice.

"You're wearing the same thing." Sirius noted.

"NO, I CHANGED MY SOCKS!" Peter yelled.

"Why are you yelling?" James asked while covering his ears.

"SNAPE USED SOME SPELL ON ME!"

"The Sonorous Charm," Sirius groaned.

"CAN YOU TAKE IT OFF FOR ME?" Peter's voice pounded through the school. People throughout the closest corridors stopped and wondered from where the ultimately loud voice was coming.

"Only the person who cast the spell can lift it." Sirius explained.

"OH DARN! WELL, I'M TIRED! LET'S GO TO SLEEP!" Peter shouted as he hopped into his bed.

An hour later, neither Sirius nor James had fallen asleep. James rolled over. He noticed that Remus was missing.

"How long has Remus been in the bathroom?"

"I dunno," Sirius muttered, "a long time. Hey, could you shut the curtains? It's so bright in here, with the moon and all."

"Why me?"

"You're closer."

"Oh, that's mature." James scoffed at Sirius's childish remark, and Sirius smiled impishly. James groped for his glasses on the bedside table. He sleepily made his way over to the window.

"No wonder it's so bright. Tonight's a full moon." James pulled the curtains together. He lay back down in his bed. Minutes passed, and a booming noise sounded. Thomas, their Muggleborn roommate, sat bolt upright.

"We're under attack!"

"Ah, it's Peter. He's snoring, and he still has the Sonorous Charm on him." Sirius grumpily explained. Peter let out another roar. James grabbed his pillow and pushed it as far as he could into his ear. As Peter's snoring became more frequent, and students from other dorms, even girls, were becoming aggravated. James and Sirius decided that it was too much. James sat up and threw his pillow at Sirius. He quickly withdrew his head from the mountain of pillows he created.

"Let's go look for Remus." James suggested.

"We'll never find-" Sirius was cut off by a deafening snort. Sirius cupped his ears and shouted, "Never mind. Let's go!" Sirius and James hopped out of bed and ran out the door. They came back in the dorm within a few seconds.

"Trousers!" James exclaimed. "We'll need those!" They slipped them on, and were off.

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"How could we have been so stupid?" Sirius scoffed silently, "We forgot our wands, and we can't see a bloody thing!"

"Well, at least we're not wandering around in our boxers." James whispered

"How are we supposed to get back now?" They pondered for a moment in the darkness. It was only a half an hour ago when they decided to search out Remus, but they had forgotten about that and were now focused on finding their way back to their dorm.

"I have an idea." James said finally, "We should turn around now, and follow Peter's snores. We'll hear him within ten minutes."

"Sounds good." They turned and were stopped by a pair of luminescent yellow-brown eyes. They knew almost immediately that they belonged to Mrs. Norris. Her ears stretched straight back, making her eyes look menacing. She hissed and ran past them. Sirius and James looked at each other and bolted.

"Who's out of bed?!" The obnoxious caretaker, Argus Filch, was soon stampeding down the corridor. He nearly stepped on his cat, who was close at his heels.

"Left! Left! Left!" Sirius whispered hoarsely. They turned sharply and slid a bit. Clearly Filch was doing his job. Their feet kicked up uncontrollably. Sirius slipped and fell forward. He hit James in the back, and his momentum caused them both to tumble repeatedly. Their unending series of rolls began to descend. They were somersaulting down the stairs. Near the bottom of the staircase, Sirius finally planted his feet on one of the steps and leapt into the air. The spinning motion of his tumbling continued, and he flipped over a few times before landing gracefully on his feet. Beside him, James painfully landed on his rump.

"Did you see that?" Sirius nearly shouted. "Did you see it? I did a real flip!" Sirius jumped up and turned over in the air. "I did it again!"

"Shhh!" James hushed him as he stood up while rubbing his throbbing backside. "It's great that you're a gymnast, but could you be a silent one?" Sirius continued to practice his flips. He was also able to accomplish back flips now. James looked up at the top of the staircase. Light was gradually creeping through the corridor. James ran and made a grab for Sirius's collar. He missed as Sirius thrust himself forward in an attempt to do a handspring. He placed his hands on the stone floor and swung his legs in front of him. After a series of front and backhand springs, James stopped him.

"Enough with the flips! Let's go in here!" They stumbled into a dark room and closed the door behind them. James looked around in the darkness as he heard Sirius bump into something. "Where are we?"

"Well," Sirius piped up, "judging by the many bookcases, I would say that we are in the Library."

"How do you know that there are bookcases?"

"I just walked into one." Sirius stated as he passed James a book. They turned sharply as the door creaked open. They ran frantically to the other side of the library.

"We know you're in here, and I'll find you!" Filch shouted. "You can't run from me!" Sirius and James crept as far away as they could from the light of Filch's lantern. If he could see them, it would be all over. They were hiding in a small corner, but the darkness was soon ebbing away. They had to get out somehow without Filch seeing them. He was very close now. James had an idea. He picked up one of the books and chucked it into the darkness far from their position. It landed with a loud thud.

"Eh?" Filch and Mrs. Norris turned their attention to the commotion on the other side of the Library. "You can run, but you can't hide!"

"I thought he said that we couldn't run!" complained James quietly.

"I'm not liking my options." Sirius whispered. He looked up and got an idea. He motioned upward to James. "He didn't say we couldn't climb! Those bookcases are twice as tall as he is. He won't see us from up there." James glanced up skeptically.

"How are we supposed to get up there?"

"It's simple: I'll give you a boost, and you can climb the rest of the way." Sirius explained.

"Well, what about you?" James inquired softly, "How are you supposed to get up there? Will Filch give you a boost?" He let out a quiet derisive laugh.

"Hey, I'm a gymnast now. I can get up there." Sirius assured him. James shook his head doubtfully. Sirius grabbed James's foot and thrust him upward. With some difficulty, James pulled himself on top. Sirius leapt confidently and grabbed one of the middle shelves. He swung his legs and flipped onto the top. "Ha!" James covered Sirius's mouth and pointed to the door. Sirius nodded in agreement. They silently and quickly hopped from one bookcase top to another. They gently dropped from the closest to the door and sped out of the Library. The light was in the far corner.

"We did it!" James whispered excitedly. "We won!"

"No," a scratchy and familiar voice came from above them, "I won, you rotten intruders!" Sirius and James felt their insides freeze. For several moments, they were numb and couldn't feel anything. It took a while to thaw out before either of them could speak.

"How.." Sirius couldn't finish the sentence.

"Mrs. Norris _told_ me that you were on top of the staircase, trying to sneak past me. It was a nice try, but I knew better!" Filch had indeed won. There was no possible escape. Sirius and James were caught for their very first time.

"Wait a minute," James turned to face Filch, "did you just say that _'Mrs. Norris'_ told you?" Filch paused. For a minute he did not say anything.

"Er…" Filch looked down at his filthy nails. Sirius and James smiled at each other.

"Well?" Sirius broke the silence. Filch looked up.

"That's, er, not the point." He concluded lamely. "You two have detention. Go to my office tomorrow at 6:00 in the evening. Consequences shall be severe if you do not show up. Now, go straight back to your dorms."

"May we please borrow a lantern?" Sirius asked politely. "We don't have our wands, and we won't be able to find our way back without a light." Filch looked at the pair suspiciously.

"Ruddy kids."

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Remus, James, and Sirius were exhausted the next morning. Their heavy eyelids drooped over their red eyes. Their hair was untamed; not even Sirius had bothered to comb it. They lifelessly stared at their slowly cooling breakfast. Peter casually strolled over to the Gryffindor Table.

"Morning!" Peter bellowed brightly. The spell hadn't been lifted. "What's wrong with you three?" James's right eye twitched. Remus fell face first into his eggs and finally slept.

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A/N- Sorry about the strange dividers. The horizontal rule isn't really working for us, so we used an 'x'design instead! We hope it's effectual! The next chapter is great, so be sure to read it!

**Preview of Ch. 9**

_"Yellow? Why's everything yellow?"_


	9. The One Where Peter Is Deemed Worthy

A/N- Sorry it's been so long since we posted up the previous chapter. We've been really busy. Anyway, this chapter will serve as a Christmas gift to all of you from us! Merry Day After Christmas!

brenngt14- Interesting thought, but no, Snape just wanted to pick on Peter and, at the same time, the rest of the Gryffindors. Talk about killing two birds with the same (loud) stone! Sirius being a gymnast was a funny, little side thing we wanted to throw in for the fun of it. He'll use it to show off to girls every once in a while.

catiedeezer- Thanks for the detailed review! We're honored to receive such a rare treat (lol!). We're glad that we have you hooked and we promise to keep a good hold of your attention and interest!

snotnosedkid- No offense was taken, but we would really appreciate it if you would kindly specify which aspects of the story you didn't particularly enjoy. Any suggestions and improvements would really benefit the readers and us.

Saeble- Of course we don't mind short reviews. We love ALL (or any) reviews!

Red English Rose- Well, you don't have to wait any longer. Peter's prank is here (and it's a very good one too)! We're really glad that you think that our writing is terrific!

Alteng- Yep, we love those cute James-Lily moments too, but unfortunately, they're going to fade as James's ego inflates. Of course, they will be revived when they finally get together (as everyone already knows they will).

Blue Eyes At Night- We're sorry we didn't post it as soon as you probably would've liked, but here's more!

NorberttheDragon- Although we're concerned for the welfare of your keyboard, we're ecstatic that we make you laugh so hard!

* * *

Chapter Nine: The One Where Peter is Deemed Worthy

"Psst! Guys, wake up!" Peter whispered. Sirius stirred. He sleepily pulled his pillow from under his head and covered his face with it. He swore into the pillow and mumbled incoherently.

"I didn't catch that, Sirius." Peter said as he pulled Remus's blankets off his bed. Sirius grumpily sat up.

"Why are you waking us up this early?" he moaned. Peter shushed him.

"Quiet. I don't want to wake the others up." he explained quietly. He tried yanking James's blanket out of his tight grip.

"Just us, huh?" Remus sighed. Peter nodded eagerly and he gave another tug at James's sheets. James was clearly much stronger than Peter.

"But it's a Saturday. There are no classes on Saturday. That's the beauty of Saturday: no classes. What's going on?" James complained. Peter gave one last tug and he toppled over. James had given up.

"I did it." Peter responded. He stood up and not so neatly folded up the blanket. Remus slowly climbed out of his four-poster bed.

"Did what?" he questioned. Peter pointed to the dormitory door and led them out. James, Remus, and Sirius followed out of curiosity. James finally spoke

"What are you showing us?" he asked. Peter held up a finger to his lips.

"I did the prank. The one you guys told me to do. You know, with the Slytherins, Snape, and the Hufflepuff girls. Keep it down, though. If we wake up teachers while we're there, I'm toast!" The trio followed Peter into the Entrance Hall. At the sight of the prank, Sirius, Remus, and James could only gape.

The Slytherins were no longer sleeping in their dormitories. They and their beds have been moved into the Entrance Hall. In fact, all of the furniture in the Slytherin House was in the Entrance Hall.

"How did you do this?" James asked with bewilderment.

"I don't remember," Peter responded, "it was a very long night." Remus nodded approvingly.

"Very clever. What did you do with Snape? I don't see him or the Hufflepuff girls here."

"Huh, I can't remember what I did with Snape."

* * *

The early sunlight streamed into the dormitory. Severus lazily rose from his slumber. He gently rubbed his eyes. When his eyes were focused, he noticed that his surrounding seemed unfamiliar. Everything was…

"Yellow?" Snape questioned out loud, "Why's everything yellow?" His gaze shot down to his bed. Green. His bed was in the middle of a Hufflepuff dormitory. He hopped off his bed and looked around. It was a girls' dormitory.

"How did I get here?" he asked himself. He ran over to the door but stopped when he heard one of the girls yawn. He froze to the spot as she stretched and finally saw him. She let out a blood-curdling scream. The other girls woke up.

"Is that a Slytherin Boy?"

"Omigod!"

"What's going on?!"

"What's he doing here?!"

"Eeeek!"

"Did another Hufflepuff let him in?"

"Can they do that?"

"Get out!" The five girls grabbed their pillows and began pummeling Snape. He tried keeping his eyes closed; some of the girls weren't dressed completely. He groped for the doorknob and sprinted out.

"And stay out!" one of the girls called after him. He tripped and tumbled down the staircase. He landed painfully on the Hufflepuff Common Room rug. Several boys were playing Gobstones on the coffee table.

"Aren't you a Slytherin?"

"How did you get in here?"

"Er…" Even Snape didn't know how he got into Hufflepuff, let alone with his bed. The Hufflepuff boys charged at him. He managed to scramble out of the Hufflepuff entrance without getting too clobbered.

* * *

"So, have I proven myself worthy to be your friend?" Peter asked in an undertone.

"I dunno," Sirius said, "I still don't see how the Hufflepuff sixth year girls are involved in this-" Sirius turned to watch Snape sprint down the Grand Staircase and head towards the dungeons. Snape stopped once he saw all of the furniture in the Entrance Hall.

"What is going on?" he questioned in a frustrated manner. His eyes locked on Sirius.

"You. Was it you that put me in the Hufflepuff girls dormitory last night?"

"No, it was Peter." Sirius corrected.

"Yeah, right." Snape scoffed.

"Uhh…"

"Peter, you should be proud of what you have done! This is truly amazing!" James convinced him. Peter swelled his chest in pride.

"Wait, he did do this? Pettigrew?"

"I did it." Peter said proudly. Some of the other Slytherins woke up. They looked around with confused looks on their faces.

"How did this happen? Who did this?" one of the Slytherins questioned aloud.

"I did it!" Peter proclaimed loudly. All of the Slytherins were staring at Peter in disbelief.

"You did it? Alone?"

"Yes, I did!"

"In one night?"

"Yep! I did it!"

"Who did this?" asked a stern voice from behind Peter.

"I did!" Peter exclaimed. He turned around to give the person behind him a wide smile, but it soon faded. Behind him was Professor McGonagall. She nodded curtly and exhaled sharply.

"I see. Well, I will get Professor Dumbledore, and you stay here." She said. She turned and climbed up the grand staircase. Peter groaned pathetically and looked at Remus, his eyes were pleading for help. Remus felt a surge of pity.

"James, Sirius, we've got to help him. If it wasn't for us, he wouldn't have done this. All he wants is to be our friend." James and Sirius nodded in agreement.

"I guess it couldn't hurt," Sirius spoke up, "I mean, this was a pretty cool prank."

"Yeah," James agreed, "we could use any more creative ideas he has."

"What happened here?" Dumbledore inquired as he descended down the grand staircase. All of the Slytherins furiously pointed to Peter, who whimpered in trepidation.

"I, er, er, erm, I, er," Peter stuttered, "I, er, please don't expel me!"

"Did you do this alone?"

"No, he didn't." James walked over to Peter's side and placed a hand on Peter's chubby shoulder.

"Yeah," Sirius joined James, "we helped him." He gestured to the three of them.

"Ah ha! I knew it!" Snape shouted happily. Professor McGonagall raised an eyebrow at him.

"Do not think that you are off the hook, Mr. Snape. I heard about what happened in the Hufflepuff girls' dormitory. The five of you will be punished." Snape opened his mouth to protest. "Not another word!" Professor McGonagall rebuked him.

"I think a month of detention would suffice." Dumbledore told them judiciously. "Yes, that seems quite fair. Your first detention will be tonight after dinner. Please return to your houses." Some of the Slytherins were confused as to where to go.

"Er, do you want us to stay here with all of the stuff, or do you want us to go into our empty house?"

"Do as you please." Professor McGonagall replied. Dumbledore smiled merrily and leaned over to her.

"I think that I might have to make a barrier on the girls dormitories so thatyoung mencan't get in."

"What about the boys dormitory?"

"Well," Dumbledore said as the pair walked into the Great Hall, "there have never been complaints about a girl sneaking into the boys dormitory." Remus, Sirius, and James headed towards the Great Hall for breakfast as well.

"Can you believe our luck? Only a month of detention!" James enthused as he pushed the doors open. They seated themselves in three vacant seats.

"Snape got in trouble too, and he was-"

"Hey," Remus interrupted, "look at Peter." James and Sirius craned their necks to look down at the far side of the Gryffindor Table. Peter had isolated himself from the rest of the Gryffindors. His head was lifelessly resting on his hand. The other hand was idly stirring his oatmeal.

"He looks a little sad." Sirius concluded.

"It's our fault that he's depressed," Remus explained, "he did that prank to become our friend." James suddenly got up from his seat and grabbed his plate.

"C'mon, let's go." he said. Remus and Sirius picked up their plates and followed James to Peter's side of the table. James pulled up a chair to Peter's right.

"Hey." greeted James.

"What are you guys doing?" Peter asked halfheartedly.

"We're hanging out with you." said Sirius. Peter dropped his spoon into his oatmeal out of surprise. He looked up at the three boys, wondering if this was true.

"What? Why?"

"Because," Remus said, "that's what friends do."

* * *

"What do you think they'll have us do for our first detention?" Peter asked his new friends. They took a left at the first floor corridor.

"Not sure. Maybe we'll do lines, because that's what I had to do for my last detention." James commented. Sirius let out a loud bark-like laugh.

"What would they make us write? 'I will not rearrange Slytherin furniture?!'"

"Well, let's hope that we do lines and not something worse." Remus remarked. Peter shrugged. He didn't care about what they had to do, because he had friends now. The four of them met Filch and Snape at the top of the Grand Staircase. This was the first time that any of them had seen Filch smile.

"We're not doing lines, are we?" Remus groaned. Filch shook his shaggy head slowly, still grinning.

"Nope. You five have to move all of the Slytherin furniture back into the dormitories and the common room without magic. I'm just here to make sure that you don't…hurt yourselves." Filch explained seriously, even though it seemed that the idea of them getting hurt didn't bother him at all. The students rolled their eyes and walked over to the furniture. They picked up the large coffee table with all of the strength they could muster.

James looked back at Filch. He was occupying himself with getting dirt from under his nails. _Surely he must have better things to do_, James thought, _what a sad life he must lead._ James looked back at Sirius, who smiled impishly and nodded towards Snape. Snape was the unfortunate student walking backwards at the head of the table. James and Sirius turned the table a bit to the left. Snape cursed softly as he bumped into a sleeping statue of a disgruntled, stout wizard. The statue awoke angrily and slapped him across the back of his greasy head.

"Ouch!" Snape rubbed his head. He put down his end of the table disdainfully.

"Sorry about that, chap!" James said jokingly.

"Yes, we lost control of the table." Sirius lied. Snape glared at the two of them, obviously not buying their story.

"Don't bother me." Snape whispered indignantly. "I shouldn't even be here. I didn't do anything wrong."

"Of course you did, you pervert." Sirius corrected him, "You were in a sixth year Hufflepuff girls dormitory"

"I don't even remember even going in there, or how it happened."

"Don't worry, we believe you, Sevvy," James held back his laughter as he spoke, "by the way, we'll never finish this detention if you don't pick up your table end." Snape rolled his dark eyes and lifted his end of the table. Remus glowered at the pair of them and shook his head. James and Sirius silently agreed not to bother Snape, which was basically ignoring him.

The detention seemed to be interminable. Hours seemed to pass each time they carried the heavy, four-poster beds. Snape wanted to strangle Filch each time he laughed at their struggling and pain. He called out to them.

"Tomorrow, you wait for tomorrow's detention." This was not news to the group, as Filch has said the same thing for the past few hours.

Once the detention was over, the boys headed to their dorms. Sirius flopped onto his bed and was asleep within seconds. As James and Remus slipped under their covers, Peter broke the silence that existed since Filch dismissed them.

"Thanks guys. I've never had friends before."

* * *

A/N- Awwwww... we love this chapter. It was so sweet! Poor Severus though. Please tell us what you think!

**Preview of Ch. 10**

_"Turkey sandwich."_


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